Happy National Feral Cat Day from your friends at Pets Unleashed.

OK, so maybe a day of awareness for a cat-astrophic problem is nothing to celebrate. But it is a great day to celebrate local efforts to reduce overpopulation in the stray and feral feline world.

For example, Geauga Humane Society's Rescue Village has provided a community service called CatSmart/TNR (Trap-Neuter-Return) since 2001. The program humanely traps, examines, neuters and vaccinates stray and feral cats, then returns them to their outdoor homes. This allows them to live out their lives in a managed colony without bringing new life into the equation, and also reduces nuisance behaviors like fighting, spraying and yowling.

This year alone Rescue Village has spayed/neutered more than 2,500 cats in this situation. Donations fund the program, which is free to residents who agree to care for the released cat.

Please click here to learn how you can give back, if just a bit, in observance.

-- Sandra M. Klepach, SKlepach@News-Herald.com